Operations Restart at Yamana’s El Peñón Mine

Several members of a union representing miners at the El Peñón mine stage a sit-in at the employee camp. (Photo courtesy of Union No. 1)

Yamana Gold resumed operations at its El Peñón mine in Chile on January 17 after negotiating collective bargaining agreements with two unions who represent the mine’s underground workers. The collective bargaining agreements are for 40 months and 48 months, and are in line with the company’s preceding final offer, Yamana said.

Operations were suspended on January 7 after several members of one union staged a sit-in at the employee camp. Operations partially resumed last on Friday, January 13, after these workers halted their sit-in in order to allow for negotiations to conclude.

The interruption in operations have not had a significant impact on mine and consolidated production and Yamana expects to recover production from other operations in the short term and from El Peñón throughout the year.

Located in northern Chile, El Peñón is a high-grade underground gold-silver mine with a 4,200-metric-ton-per-day (mt/d) agitated leaching /counter current decantation (CCD) and Merrill-Crowe plant.

Yamana is a Canadian-based gold producer with properties throughout the Americas including Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Canada.